A Funny Story

When we were at Amy's dorm this past weekend we noticed this "hottie wall" in her hall.

The girls had cut out pictures of actors, singers, and other cute guys and put them up to look at. I noticed one I didn't recognize and asked Amy about him. Pointing to the slightly bald young man in black at the top of the pictures I asked, "Who thinks this one is 'hot?' " Amy chuckled and said, "There's a funny story to that one."

It seems when they had Family Home Evening at their apartment one night, one of the boys- Todd- came to Amy and said, "Amy. I need to talk to you about this 'hottie wall' you girls have." He led her to the photos and asked, "Now, which ones do YOU think are hotties?" Amy pointed to Jude Law, Paul Bettany, and Gerard Butler and answered, "Oh, probably these." "No, Amy," Todd answered, "You need to look a LITTLE harder." Amy glanced at the top, found the photo of TODD that he had placed there himself, and got a good laugh! I loved it! Amy says Todd is 18, going bald, very confident, a good leader, and a fun guy. Gotta love those BYU guys!

Amy and Mandy

My dear friend Kris gave me this picture of her daughter Mandy and Amy together at Mandy's cousin Nancy's wedding. Mandy and Amy were the string duet that played the wedding music. Mandy is an amazing violin player and when Amy plays cello with her they sound wonderful together.

Mandy is six-months older than Amy and they have been friends since Amy was 18 months old! Mandy was a grade ahead in school, but that didn't keep them from being "best friends forever."

All the way up till they were thirteen or so they played elaborate "adventure games" where they made up characters and situations and acted them out. One of my favorite memories of them is when the families went to Disneyland together and Mandy, Amy, and another friend, Audrey, were enacting an adventure at the beach with their pirate swords from the theme park!

The original plan was for Amy to graduate a year early and the two of them would go to BYU together. When we decided we weren't ready to part with Amy early, Mandy went ahead to Utah State University in Logan. Now that Amy is at BYU they still get together occasionally. They spent this past weekend at Mandy's apartment and cooked Easter dinner together.

I'm so glad they are still friends and enjoy each other's company. We love Mandy and miss her too!

A Day Over the Mountain

We spent today in Provo and Salt Lake with Amy. It was so fun to see her-and never long enough! We can't wait till she is home for the summer!

First the girls tried out being in a college dorm. They FILLED it up!

We spent most of the day at the Hogle Zoo.

The girls loved the giraffes. There was a new baby!Ally is the same size as an orangutan. Well, except for her arms...

The elephants were very active, eating, "vacuuming" with their trunks, and chewing on the wooden walls.
Afterward, we went to the "swing-y park" and the girls went for a fun ride. (It was a lot of work too!) A fun day!

Mt. Pleasant

Maddie, Julie, Ally and I are at the Mt. Pleasant house for a few days for spring break. I should say we are at Grandma S.'s house, because she has got it fixed up so nicely! I've been feeling sorry for her being up here with "no furniture" in an "empty" house, but as usual, she has taken a little and made a LOT of it! The house is nicely furnished with odds and ends and looks great. It has comfy places to sleep, sit, eat, and play. What more could we ask for?!

The girls played in the snow in the back yard till dark last night, then cooked hot dogs in the fireplace for dinner. They played with the Playmobil fairy tale and pirate sets, then made up an elaborate game with plastic animals in the fireplace rocks! I had to force them to bed at midnight! We asked them what they wanted to do today and they said, "Play in the snow." Easy vacation, huh??


Who says you have to be a Girl Scout to "cook out?"


Say what you like about this place. Mock it's "rural-ness" if you please. I think the name fits. What a pleasant getaway in a pleasant little town.

Happy as a Lark

There is nothing particularly amazing, noteworthy, or precocious about this video. I love it though, because it shows a happy little girl toddling around the backyard, singing, playing, enjoying the good weather...just having a great time. Why can't we all be more like little children?? Grateful for the things we have, satisfied with the way life is, happy and content...



I love you, happy little Sydney!

She's a Model!

Maddie's Young Women group at church had a fashion show this week. They modeled all kinds of modest outfits and had a lesson on preparing for temple marriage.

Maddie wore her favorite school outfit.


She and I modeled together wearing our favorite Value Color - blue. (Oh, the things we do for our children. I would never have thought you could get me on the "runway" for a million dollars!)
(Thank goodness Grandma D. didn't get a close-up shot!)

For the finale, all the girls wore white blouses, black pants, and bright pink accessories.


I'm grateful Maddie has the confidence I lacked as a young woman. I HATED being the center of attention (except on stage in school plays, when I wasn't MYSELF!) Maddie is willing to try almost any good thing. She lead the music in combined YW & Relief Society opening exercises her second week in Young Women. She volunteered to play the piano for YW when she's only had two years of piano lessons. She babysits an infant and two toddlers many Friday nights. She's challenging her orchestra teacher in class to see who is the better violin player. She knows HE is, but the class encouraged her, so she said "why not??" (If any "first chair" player wins a challenge with the teacher, the class gets a party!) She amazes me...I'm so glad she's a part of our family. Life would definitely NOT be the same without her. I love you, Maddie!

She's Got Spirit!

This has been Nevada Reading Week and the schools in our town always celebrate in a big way. Maddie's school, Garrett Junior High, had a special theme each day, and students who participated each day got their "passports" signed by a teacher. Today they will get a prize if their passport is completely signed off.

Monday was "Realistic/Historical Fiction Dress Code" day. Maddie dressed up as Pricilla Lapham from Johnny Tremain. That was especially fun for me, as that was one of my all-time favorite books as a child. Maddie read it recently and loved it too. She couldn't put it down.



Tuesday's theme was "Fantasy, Fairies, Monsters, and Ghosts." Maddie dressed as Princess Pea from The Tale of Despereaux. That is HER favorite book. She has read it five times!



Wednesday was "Poets Past and Present" day. We researched Ogden Nash and Maddie carried these poems in her pocket.


Grandpa is Ashamed

A child need not be very clever
To learn that "Later, dear" means "Never."


The Parent

Children aren't happy with nothing to ignore,
And that's what parents were created for.

The Lama

The one-l lama,
He's a priest;
The two-l llama,
He's a beast.
And I will bet
A silk pajama
There isn't any
Three-l lllama.

Thursday she brought in a current event to share. It was about a blind man who received his sight back by having part of his son's tooth implanted in his eye!!

Today Maddie wore "alien socks," " time-traveler pants" and a "little green man" emerald shirt to celebrate the "War of the World Science Fiction" theme.


I'm so glad she has SPIRIT. It's not easy being twelve and worrying what your friends think of you all the time. I'm happy she has the courage to get involved and enjoy life!